By the Numbers: Anderson Silva

The former
Ultimate Fighting Championship middleweight titleholder rewrote
the record book during his historic stay atop the 185-pound weight
class, turning away one contender after another, often in
devastating fashion. From Oct. 14, 2006 until July 6, 2013, Silva
held sway over a division that included Rich
Franklin, Dan
Henderson, Nate
Marquardt, Demian Maia,
Vitor
Belfort, Chael Sonnen
and Yushin
Okami. All failed to unseat him. “The Spider” captured the
middleweight crown by rearranging Franklin’s face at UFC 64 and did
not relinquish his hold on the throne until he ran into Chris
Weidman at UFC 162 nearly seven years later. Still active into
his 40s, Silva last appeared at UFC 208 on Feb. 11, when he took a
controversial decision from Derek
Brunson and closed the book on a five-fight drought that saw
him go 0-4 with one no-contest. He has been booked opposite
Kelvin
Gastelum at UFC Fight Night 122 on Nov. 25 in Shanghai, China,
where he figures to be an underdog in the minds of most
observers.

During his long and successful career, Silva has compiled his share
of intriguing statistical data:

2,457: Days spent as UFC middleweight champion. It
ranks as the longest title reign in Ultimate Fighting Championship
history at any weight.

10: Consecutive title defenses as middleweight
champion, the most by any titleholder in UFC history. Demetrious
Johnson equaled his mark with his submission of Wilson Reis
at UFC on Fox 24. “Mighty Mouse” can surpass it with a victory over
Ray
Borg at UFC
215 on Sept. 9.